by Ralph Grabowski with Alexey Ershov
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LEDAS consists of a group of mathematicians and programmers from Russia who for nearly twenty years now have been creating some of the remarkable software used by CAD vendors. Much of their early work was done for Dassault Systemes. Over time, the company developed two businesses, the larger one in consulting doing R&D [research and development] and programming services, and the other being LEDAS' own line of software.
LEDAS scored a major coup when Bricsys purchased the constraints technology that LEDAS had developed and hired several programmers to form Bricsys Russia Technologies. This division provides the technology used by Bricsys' advanced software for direct modeling, sheet metal design, and BIM, and is licensed to other CAD vendors.
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LEDAS ceo Alexey Ershov described to me over Skype the areas of R&D in which his company is engaged today. "There are several new or relatively new areas in our services business." The first of the new ones that he highlighted runs 3D applications in Web browsers.
LEDAS Cloud Platform (LCP) reads the model on the server, tessellates it, and then sends the 3D data to the Web browser. (See figure 1.) Modifications made in the browser are sent back to the source 3D model on the server, establishing bi-directional workflow between client and server, which is essential. LCP uses the C3D kernel from C3D Labs or the open-source Open Cascade kernel. Should customers want to run other kernels, such as ACIS or Parasolid, they can be licensed and then integrated with the platform using LEDAS services. https://lcp.ledas.com:8081
Figure 1: LEDAS Cloud Platform displaying a 3D model (all images sourced from LEDAS)
The LEDAS system can run many 3D models in parallel due to the direct connection between browser and server; the number of servers can be arbitrary, numbering in the hundreds or even in the thousands. Some customers asked that it also run on legacy systems, such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer 11, and so LEDAS accommodated them, but warned them that LCP may be slower in IE11 due to lack of full compatibility with JavaScript; performance in Chrome and Firefox is fine.
Mr Ershov showed me how LCP reads the properties in IFC files to prove that it works with models exported from BIM systems. (See figure 2.) It handles the Stanford dragon, a scanned model made of 871,414 triangles, with no lag in orbited viewing. (See https://graphics.stanford.edu/data/3Dscanrep/.) Point cloud models supported by LCP can have several millions of points.
Figure 2: LCP displaying a BIM model opened from an IFC file
To accelerate the development of Web-based CAD, vendors can base their applications on LCP, with customer-specific functions implemented by LEDAS upon request. As an example, LCP can compare two CAD models: both are opened on server, and then LEDAS' own 3D model comparison algorithm is applied to them. (See figure 3.)
Figure 3: LCP comparing the geometry of two 3D models
LCP runs on private clouds [local servers] and on public clouds, and the company offers further services, such as deployment. There are several 3D browser projects LEDAS is delivering for customers. In one of them, developed for a US company, a sketcher runs in the browser, with all computation and constraints performed with the browser. This was accomplished by porting the C3D solver from C++ to Javascript.
CAM R&D Projects
Despite cloudCAD being today's poster boy, the bulk of the consulting programming LEDAS does is in CAD and CAM [computer-aided manufacturing]. Mr Ershov described some of the CAM projects underway, such as the client in Europe who makes laser equipment for cutting, welding, and 3D printing with metal powder. Another client works with nesting of sheet metal and composites to minimize material waste, and defining tool passes for laser and punching devices. A third uses traditional metalworking tools but employs new shapes for the working ends of the tools and new materials with which they work.
Not all CAD models can be manufactured by machine tools, and so LEDAS developed manufacturing validation. Here, the 3D model is uploaded through the browser, and then the system analyzes it to see if the model can be manufactured using a defined set of tools. Are the holes the correct diameter? Can rounding be applied?
Another project, for a customer in Europe, imports existing products into the Web browser and then performs specific operations on the models, such as calculating each one’s swept volume.
There is another project, more fundamental than any of the others described here, that Mr Ershov asked me to not report on. When it comes to outsourced services, some customers prefer to minimize information about their internal developmentments.
BIM R&D Projects
BIM [building information modeling] is relatively new to LEDAS, with the company having worked on it for three years now
For a client in Asia, they wrote a full BIM modeler that runs in Web browsers. It handles the architectural, structural, and MEP [mechanical, electrical, plumbing] aspects of models, performs calculations of costs, and more. Mr Ershov sees this unique project as a challenge, as it was one of the biggest in the LEDAS portfolio.
Programmers from LEDAS developed the parametric cross-section function for Renga, that new Russian BIM modeler. Cross-sections of objects, like beams and columns, do not need to be rectangular or round; in Renga, they can have complex cross sections, which are defined by parametric contours with geometric constraints driving the shapes. LEDAS also came up with the code to perform automatic calculations of rooms with walls and separators, and determine their properties. https://rengabim.com/en/
Medical R&D Projects
An under-reported effort by the CAD/CAM industry is in the area of medicine, particularly combining artificial parts with the flesh and bones of the human body, such as replacement teeth and replacement limbs.
Of particular interest is the interface between human and non-human, because human parts are typically represented in CAD as 3D meshes made from scan data, while the non-human parts are designed using solid modeling -- and the two do not mesh well. [Pardon the pun.] In the past, you would have to convert the meshes to solids (which do not convert well), or the solids to meshes, which cannot be analyzed for strength.
So a huge effort is underway by firms like Spatial and Siemens PLM to create MCAD systems that edit both at the same time: how do artificial limbs interface with bone? LEDAS is also working on converting mesh models to CAD models, with an announcement expected soon.
A more specific area of medicine is stomatology (a word for dentistry that is largely unknown in North America). One project developed by LEDAS also works in the browser and on the server to create a bridge between the doctor/dentist, the patient, and the technicians making the dental pieces.
In another project, LEDAS is solving the geometric problems created by dental implants. Using scans and the interpretation of scanned images from different scanners., Mr Ershov is particularly fascinated in solving the problem of predicting how tissue and other dental parts are changed during the treatment period, which can last months. [Having had an implant that took nearly two years and then did not fit correctly (it was too tall), I appreciate the problem!]
A new project in which LEDAS just began involves the replacement of bones and joints by taking into account bio-mechanics.
Q&A
Q: Is the surfaces-solids work you are doing similar to Polyhedra from Spatial?
A: In some sense, yes. We want to make CAD models and polygonal meshes good friends, and then go even further by turning “dead” polygonal meshes into live (editable) 3D CAD models. We have no business relationships with Spatial and we do not use Polyhedra.
Q: Do you have a connection with the Open Design Alliance?
A: We are involved in the ecosystem of ODA in many ways, and sometimes even cooperate in development. Our first joint project was in 2009 when we developed a dedicated external module for solving geometric constraints in Teigha (known as “DWGdirect” back then). After that we did many projects for customers who needed to support DWG/DXF in their applications through the Teigha libraries – either through their own licenses or ours.
Q: How old is LEDAS?
A: It will be 20 years old next year. I am proud to say that our company has doubled in size in the last five years, with work from USA-related firms exploding in the last two years. This year we are moving into a new and bigger office in Academpark, which is the new center of IT in Novosibirsk, very close to our current office.
Q: Is the international squabbling between politicians affecting your business?
A: Taking this into account, we were really surprised by the fast growth of our business from the USA. I suppose businesses just want to get their work done, and we provide that to them through our unique competences and skills.
Q: Which are the biggest products in your stable?
A: I would say that LEDAS Cloud Platform and LEDAS Geometry Comparison have the most customers, with a stronger interest in LEDAS Cloud Platform nowadays. It launched last fall, and we experienced fast and positive feedback from the market. Our increasing earnings from R&D services are significantly greater than earnings from our products, which corresponds to our strategy to be a world-acknowledged provider of unique software research and development services. http://www.ledas.com
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| Still not measuring enough, measurement firm Hexagon acquires Next Sensefor its CALIPRI patent and equipment to "compensate for tilts & rotations during scanning, providing highly-accurate measurement values that are free of operator influence." https://www.nextsense-worldwide.com
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Dear PR People,
Please stop putting me on press release mailing lists for things like the "Journal of Oral Implantology."
Thank you.
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Clean Motion plans to use Siemens PLM Software to build its three-wheeled ZBee cars in many small factories producing variants. In an apparent attempt to avoid the Tesla manufacturing disaster, a central "digital" factory ensures that all branch factories operate identically. Clean Motion plans to build 5,000 vehicles a year using the following Siemens software:
- NX software for CAD design
- Teamcenter for PLM
- Simcenter for simulation
- Tecnomatix for digital manufacturing
- Managed Services on AWS
- Mindsphere for IoT to monitor and feed back live data from the factory
I am unsure of the economics of building 13 vehicles a day in multiple manufacturing factories. The markup for this electric, three-wheeled bike lacking doors (Swedish winters, anyone?) must be incredulous.
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Steve Johnson (@SteveJohnsonCAD): "Ava [Autodesk virtual assistant]appears on portions of the Autodesk website and will later be placed in Autodesk software." Do we really have to suffer more cool-looking, cool-sounding tech that's functionally pointless, rather than real product improvements?
UPFRONT.EZINE (@upFronteZine): The likely purpose of the AI support system is, of course, to engender more layoffs from Autodesk.
https://venturebeat.com/2018/05/18/how-autodesks-assistant-ava-attempts-to-avoid-uncanny-valley/
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Altair reports Q1 revenues of $91.7 million, up 19% over the first quarter of 2017. Net income was $3.9 million, improved from a net loss of $2.2 million last year. The company expects 2018 revenues to be $373.0 million.
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OK, now I'm official old in Internet years. I'm working with tech support on downloading beta software from their FTP site, but it's not connecting.
Tech support: "I don't know how FTP software works."
Sigh.
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I've booked my flight to attend: The Siemens PLM Connections Americasconference June 3-6 will offer a couple of BYOD classes. Bring your own device (a Windows laptop with RDP client software installed) to the 'BX Administration' and 'Active Workspace' classes to run the software on your device. Check that it works through https://training.plm.automation.siemens.com/courses/cloud/cloudcheck.cfm
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I've booked my flight to attend: The Open Design Conference in Prague this September will cover the following topics:
- Drawings enhancements
- Version history and file sharing for DWG
- 3D visualization for desktop and web
- BIM toolkit for Revit
- 3D PDF publishing
https://conference.opendesign.com/
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BigRep 3D-printed the first airless bicycle tire with its new TPU-based filament Pro FLEX, replacing the air with a three-layer honeycomb. The tire was printed 1:1 in BigRep's ONE 3D printer, which has a build volume of 1 cubic meter.
"The airless tire was a successful prototype to demonstrate the ease and speed at which flexible spare parts can be 3D printed." My bike-riding friends wondered about ride-ability and durability. I wondered about the print speed; the communications manager replied, "As we printed the tire with a new filament and as a complete new project the print time is not significant."
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"A synecdoche is a class of metonymy."
- An online dictionary
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For late-breaking CAD news, follow upFront.eZine on Twitter at @upfrontezine. |
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I started on AutoCAD R11 and absolutely loved your The Illustrated AutoCAD R12 Quick Reference so much so that I bought each succeeding quick reference guide thereafter. I also taught AutoCAD as a night class for ten years at the University of Alaska Anchorage's Kenai Campus, and it was one of the books I required for the class -- referring to it as the "AutoCAD Bible and worth its weight in gold."
I am just getting into BricsCAD, so downloaded your BricsCAD for AutoCAD Users [PDF], and it got me to wondering: Are you going to produce an Illustrated BricsCAD Quick Reference Guide?
- Mike Dunn, CAD manager
Homer Electric Association, Alaska
The editor replies: That Quick Ref was the only CAD book I ever used! I would love to write a BricsCAD version, but with the royalties in the CAD book market being as poor as they is, I write only on spec, meaning someone would have to pay a lump sum for the work.
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It's Autodesk's IP [intellectual property], their rules. If you never read their ninety-page addendum, it's your fault. It simply boils down to this: if you're using a dinosaur machine and still running non-cloud-based products, you are pretty much effed. It's simply how their economics work. Autodesk makes money from subscriptions and their software cycle is tied to that. I don't think any company supports older versions of software as they stand to lose more money if they have to worry about forward support for legacy products.
As for Autodesk's subscriptions, it currently stands that you don't lose your software after the subscription ends; however, you can't use the software professionally and you can't get updates unless you keep the subscription going. If you had been using their cloud services and storage, you lose the benefits when your subscription ends. It basically defaults you to their free package.
Nice business model right there: they hold your work hostage until you resubscribe.
- Panicman (on WorldCAD Access)
The editor replies: Lock-in is the master plan.
As Marc Lind stated in Beyond PLM, we think Red Hat explains process pretty well: https://youtu.be/RXDsRoc6MGo . Different times, different tech, same outcome
- David Ewing, technical account manager (via WorldCAD Access)
Aras
Re: “It is amusing to watch and hear the elite thrashing about for who to blame as they worry about losing their status.”
Nicely sly and double-edged (I think!) My vote, or rather pre-debate comment was: "Neither of the above; read Cory Doctorow's 'Walkaway.'
“Futures like mine aren’t predictions, they’re landmarks on the far horizon. By keeping our eyes on them as we cross the difficult, unmappable terrain ahead of us, we might reach them – or find something just as good along the way.”
- Tom Foster
Tom Foster Architecture, England
The editor replies: We cannot predict the future, because we think linearly, and the future doesn't arrive that way.
Re: "Companies look for ways to charge more than what you think is the price."
Another good option [for a non-car vendor GPS] is to just buy a nice cheap android tablet for a hundred bucks, load CoPilot software for something like twelve dollars, and you have a stand-alone, no cell signal required GPS with a bigger screen. And when you have wifi available, it will do other stuff.
I've been doing this way for several years, and I like it better than a stand-alone GPS, and better than any map app on my phone, including CoPilot. Maps are one application where a bigger screen is always better.
And my wife's newish Ford Edge has the built-in touchscreen. It's fairly useless, since you can't interact with it unless you're in park. And it's pretty dated, being a 2013 model, with updates available only from Ford at some insane price.
- Jess Davis, president
Davis Precision Design
The editor replies: I thought about using a tablet, but I like the small screen size of the dedicated GPS mounted on the windshield.
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- Management Speak on Twitter (@managerspeak) |
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